Mistake Opens New World To Car-Green Editor

FROM THE EDITOR

A man standing next to the printing press noticed the mistake before the ink was dry on the Tuesday edition.

The car on the front page of the paper was labeled as a '57 Chevy. It was, in fact, a '56 Chevy.

A 1956 Chevy

When the error was reported to the 33-year-old, female editor, she immediately said two very stupid things.

"How much difference can one year really make?"

And, "Do you think anyone will notice?"

That comment echoed off the walls of the Mogollon Rim and the phone began to ring.

The editor now knows more than I thought there was to know about the '57 Chevy and just how much can change in a year when it comes to classic cars.

Most of the callers told me about the tailfins.

But I also know about the chrome headlights, the smaller wheels and lower profile and the fact that 1957 was the first year Chevy sold cars with fuel injection.

After all the phone calls -- which were humbling but very interesting -- I can now identify the year of any Chevrolet produced in the 1950s in my sleep. And I also know why Payson is the site of the incredible Beeline Cruise-In and Charity Auto Show.

I know that there are people who will be walking down Main Street this Saturday, appreciating cars on a level I cannot even imagine.

After listening to the description of the '57 Chevy by one man, it sounded like the words I have heard others use to describe a fine wine or a piece of art. It is a world you enter, full of information to be absorbed. The more you learn, the more you want to know. And the more you know, the more you appreciate what you are seeing during an event like the Cruise-In.

Many of the callers this week ended their classic car lessons with a heartfelt invitation to Saturday's car show.

"Come on down. You'll learn something."

And though I might wear dark glasses, so I am not "the woman who doesn't know the difference between a '56 and a '57," I'll be there with my eyes wide.

Making that mistake may have introduced me to a whole new world.

In this edition of the Roundup, you'll see a 24-page program for this year's Cruise-In, full of information about individual cars and a schedule of events. The photos and the write-ups should be enough to whet your appetites for one of the busiest and most interesting weekends in Rim Country.